February 5, 2010

The Queen of Hearts

I've seen these Heart Garlands making their way around the blogosphere. One particularly fabulous blogger showed how she used the technique of sewing the paper hearts together. (and if I remembered who it was, I'd totally link back to you!)

To make our garland, I traced a single heart on scrapbook paper and asked E to cut them out. She did a great job and managed to cut around 10 hearts before calling it quits. I cut out the rest and then quickly sewed them together on the sewing machine. Who knew you could sew paper? (Okay, probably everyone, but it came as a pleasant surprise to me.)

Isn't it darling? I love the crooked child-cut hearts interspersed through. It inspired me to decorate the entire mantel for Valentines Day. I'm so excited to finally get to participate in my sister's weekly mantel party! (Beth - Surprise!)

The vases on the left were supposed to be filled with candy, but the M&Ms have been all but completely devoured by my husband and the conversation hearts smelled so strong that they were making me queasy (no, I'm not pregnant). I threw some silk flowers in instead but will probably restock with a Costco-sized bag of M&Ms. Let me see him eat all of those! The tulips were a total splurge, but it's my birthday tomorrow, so I felt entitled.

In this story, Ann Estelle works hard to make her Valentines Day box the prettiest one ever. She covers it in flowers, lace, and other fun things. But when Valentines Day comes, she realizes that she was so focused on decorating her box that she forgot to make Valentines Day cards for everyone! In an act of sacrifice, she begins removing the precious decorations from the box and handing them to her friends as gifts.

The adorable illustrations of Mary Engelbreit combined with a story about giving and friendship, make this book a delightful Valentines Day read.